Sunday, November 29, 2020

With the Chang'e 5 launch, China takes a giant leap forward in the race to the moon

China is the only country that has landed on the moon in decades. Recent attempts by India and a private group in Israel failed with what aerospace observers termed “ballistic landings” (i.e. crashes.) Thus, China is far and away ahead in the modern race to the moon. The winner of the 21st century moon race will have access to the moon’s resources and position as the gateway to the rest of the solar system and will thus own the future.

Saturday, November 28, 2020

California voters save the rideshare industry in their state

"The political culture in California is a curious one. California voters keep electing lawmakers and a governor who treat them like medieval peasants by passing outrageous laws. Then the voters pass propositions that repeal the most onerous of those laws. In most states, voters just get rid of the offending politicians and elect more sensible ones in their place."

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

Sunday, November 22, 2020

How space exploration will help to address climate change

"An article in Astronomy Magazine suggests that the ultimate solution to climate change will be to move resource extraction and heavy industry off the planet. The notion seems like science fiction, but some very serious people are looking at the idea of a space-based industrial revolution. Jeff Bezos, who made his billions from Amazon.com and now runs a space launch company called Blue Origin, suggests “zoning” Earth for residential areas and “light industries.” Mining and manufacturing, two of the biggest sources of environmental pollution, would move off the planet."

Sunday, November 15, 2020

What should Biden do with NASA and the Artemis Program?

Little is known of what Biden believes about NASA and its role in promoting space exploration. Because the United States is in for a period of divided government, Biden will not be able to make huge changes at NASA because such will have to pass muster in the Republican Senate. He will not be able to cancel the Artemis program, even if he wants to. Artemis enjoys healthy support on both sides of the aisle. Biden should remember the firestorm kindled when President Obama summarily killed the Constellation program. Continuity should be the order of the day.

Thursday, November 12, 2020

Biden should choose Kathy Lueders as his NASA administrator

Fortunately, Team Biden has an exceptional candidate for NASA Administrator in the person of Kathy Lueders, currently NASA Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations. Before she was named in charge of HEO, Lueders managed the Commercial Crew Program and saw it to success. Artemis and the International Space Station are part of portfolio.

Monday, November 09, 2020

This news would have been useful for President Trump a couple of weeks ago. Pfizer’s Early Data Shows Vaccine Is More Than 90% Effective

Sunday, November 08, 2020

NASA's International Space Station is about to become a film location

Could the International Space Station (ISS) become a location for major motion pictures? It seems that the orbiting lab, which cost hundreds of billions of dollars to construct and maintain, is about to serve that role.

NASA finds more water on the 'sunlit side' of the moon; what does it mean?

On Oct. 26, NASA announced that water exists in far greater abundance on the sunlit side of the moon than had hitherto been believed. The discovery resulted from observations of a telescope that NASA regularly flies at an altitude of 45,000 feet above the Earth’s surface.